THEME
Home
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
REPUBLIC The Series 7 ™
‒ Colours in perfect shape
Homeliness according to Jaime Hayon + Tal R adds colour to the Series 7™ Architectural masterpieces Fri™ – brand new easy chair Architecture that focuses on feeling at home The Republic – Fritz Hansen’s new visitors centre PHOTO Ditte Isager STYLING Christine Rudolph
Republic of Fritz Hansen
COLOURS IN PERFECT SHAPE
Series 7™ Designed by Arne Jacobsen Produced by Fritz Hansen
HOME SWEET HOME PHOTO Egon Gade
Homes are fascinating. They are the settings for our lives and they often tell stories about who we are. At Fritz Hansen we have always been committed to contributing to the creation of homes based on our strong belief in the value of lasting design, quality of materials and craftsmanship. The concept of home and the feeling of belonging are both physical and mental experiences and in both senses we believe that a single piece of furniture can change not only a room but also people’s perception of it.
tions as they have been for previous ones. That is the fulfilment of our vision of creating timeless design. The Series 7™ is a beautiful example of long-lasting design. It travels easily in time and is known around the world. In Denmark, most of us, from the youngest lad to the oldest greybeard, have been sitting in the Series 7™ at home, in school or in public spaces. Now we send the Series 7™ off on new adventures dressed in a series of exclusive colours created by the Danish artist Tal R. The beautiful colours give the individualists new opportunities to put their own stamp on their home, and future generations something to look forward to.
In the Nordics, we spend more time indoors, and this is highly reflected in our homes. We talk about a special Nordic aesthetic that, apart from its simplicity, is characterized by the fact that we put a lot of effort into the functionality and decoration of our homes. This is where we cultivate our individuality, and this is where we gather family and friends.
A feeling of home – also at work In our modern society, it is not unusual for us to spend as many hours at work as we spend in our homes. Thus it makes sense that our workplaces hold some of the same qualities as our homes. At Fritz Hansen it is our mission to help create spaces, at home and at work, where we feel comfortable and welcome. In a number of different examples, we focus on how architecture and furnishings create workplaces, where the feeling of home contributes to a positive and productive atmosphere.
In all homes, furniture plays an important role: It can be pieces we have selected and bought ourselves, and it can be pieces we have inherited or received as presents. Regardless of their origin, they tell a story about who we are and who our ancestors were. At Fritz Hansen, we are proud that our furniture pieces effortlessly and completely naturally become part of new environments, and are just as relevant for new genera-
Jacob Holm, CEO, Republic of Fritz Hansen
EST. 1872
3
REPUBLIC CONTENTS
30 06 Our attitude to colour 08 Tal R adds colour to the Series 7™ We meet the world-famous artist for a chat about art and colour
12
38
12 Colours in perfect shape Nine new colours for the Series 7™ 16 Fri™ – a new easy chair Jaime Hayon has designed a little brother to Ro™ - a smaller easy chair, putting you in the mood to connect with others 20 Architectural masterpieces An epoch for Danish residential design
08
16
24 Four monochrome versions of the Series 7™ A brand new look for the classic chair
38 Homeliness according to Jaime Hayon About feeling at home and the power of Nordic aesthetics
28 Architecture that focuses on feeling at home Interview with Dan Stubbergaard, partner in architectural studio COBE 30 Sammen™ – Fritz Hansen’s new dining chair Jaime Hayon embraces the dining room with a new soft and welcoming chair 34 Join™ – when function dictates form A new collection of coffee tables from Fritz Hansen’s design team 35 Kasper Salto on the newest member of the NAP™ family Seven quick questions for the young Danish designer
36 The Republic - visitors centre Learn how Fritz Hansen’s old manufacturing hall has been transformed into a contemporary and historic exhibition
40 Hanne and Poul Kjærholm A home created from a unique pairing
44
42 The magic of marble Did you know that the word marble originates via Latin from the Greek marmaros, meaning boulder? 44 The activity-based office Snöhetta has designed Deloitte’s new headquarters in Oslo 48 The Danish model Henning Larsen Architects build the new headquarters for Siemens in Munich
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Attitude to colour
OUR ATTITUDE TO COLOUR
PHOTO Ditte Isager
Here at Republic of Fritz Hansen™ we believe that furniture can transform a space. We also believe, however, that colours can transform furniture. Colours have no fixed definitions or sizes. Colours change depending on the material they cover, and the same colour can look completely different on the authentic materials we use for our furniture, whether this be veneer, stone, textiles or leather. Colours can also change dramatically depending on the light in a given room. The extent to which a room sits bathed in sunlight or north-facing in the shade will have a decisive effect on the perception of a particular colour and consequently, on a particular piece of furniture. The hours of the day and the shift of the seasons also make an impression on the colours we surround ourselves with. Colours take colouring from each other. From the tones of walls and wooden pieces, the subtle nuances in an artwork they appear next to, ceramic and glass objects, pillows, carpets and throws. Last but by no means least, colours also change over time. They develop a patina, they wear out, fade and are bleached. We celebrate all of this: That a colour is not just a colour, but is a complex and continuously changing entity. We love the fact that colour changes over time, because this makes our furniture vital and unique.
7
R
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Interview Tal R
Tal
A FEELING FOR COLOUR TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen
PHOTO Kennie Ørsted
I start by asking how the partnership with Fritz Hansen came into being? ”We have a long history together. Fritz Hansen contacted me when the Egg™ turned 50 and asked whether I would like to help with a new interpretation of the chair. I would love to, if I could do it in the way I wanted. So I made 50 of these patchwork chairs here, where the small, rectangular pieces of cloth were such a strong contrast to the organic shape of the Egg™. And where patchwork, a recycled material with a low status created an interesting opposition to a high-status furniture piece like the Egg™“.
We meet the world-famous Danish painter Tal Rosen zweig, better known as Tal R, in his ’Paradis’ studio in Copenhagen, to discuss his collaboration with Fritz Hansen, as well as to talk about his upbringing, about choosing art as a way of life, about what drives him and about his ability to understand colour. Karen, Tal R’s smiling assistant and Fanny, his silvercoloured Grand Danois puppy, welcome us with open arms and the impression is overwhelming. First and foremost, we notice the colours and the exoticism. Coming in from the grey courtyard on an ice-cold February day, the contrast is enormous.
And when Fritz Hansen then called up about the project to add colour to their range of Series 7™ chairs? ”Well, then I said yes without hesitation. I’ve grown up with that chair. In Denmark, there are two chairs: There is the one, you sat in at school with four wooden legs and a flat, round back, and there is the Series 7™“.
Inside, rose pink dominates the colour spectrum, not only in the huge painting at the far end of the studio, which Tal R is in the process of adding the final touches to, but also in the drawings of women in various stages of undress that hang everywhere. Here too, however, there is green, blue, yellow, gold and silver, a sea of figurines made from both papier mâché and wood, as well as paintbrushes and glass jars with an almost infinite number of pigments. There can be no doubt that here, art production flows freely, and yet it also feels incredibly inviting and pleasant.
Do you find taking on commercial assignments problematic? ”I consider more whether I have an answer that I can stand behind. If I do and if I have time, and if it is the kind of job, that speaks to me, then I am happy to work on the project“.
”Hi“, Tal R shouts over to us in welcome and puts down his paintbrush, ”I’ll be right with you“. We are served coffee on the deep sofa dubbed rather eloquently as ’Opiumbed’, a sofa Tal R created himself, and which is covered in colourful rag throws. Fanny also makes herself comfortable.
What did you sit on in your childhood home? ”We sat on Wegner chairs with wicker seats. My parents also had a Piet Hein table and a Børge Mogensen sofa, so I grew up with classic Danish furniture. Middle class furniture“.
8
For me, the Series 7™ has become an icon, and I knew straight away that I could colour it beautifully Tal R
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Interview
Tal R
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Interview Tal R
art school; more really to get out of going to gymnasium but as I really enjoyed drawing, then why not be an artist? But it is funny that both my cousin and my friend drew much better and more realistically than I did. But they lacked determination. My cousin went on to be an astrophysicist while my friend is now a guitarist in a heavy metal band. There is something that drives a person to draw, that makes them an artist. It is something unspoken in your circumstances, in your family, in your genes, in the way you’re built“.
again. We drink some more coffee, although he drinks tea himself, and continue: ”When I returned to Denmark, I tried to go back to art school, but only to find out that it still did not interest me. This time however I had an epiphany about how colour could be used together in different combinations. I suddenly understood the perception of colour. I still did not know though what I was going to use this new knowledge for. It took me almost ten years to figure that out. But now I could paint. I just did not know what I should do with my talent“.
So what drove you? ”A boy of 19 wants to be able to express himself. Although in reality, he has no idea what he ought to do with his life. He wants to conquer the world, but is still ruled by all these forces, which need reining in“. Our topic of conversation moves onto Tal R’s childhood, and I’m curious to learn more about his parents and his siblings and about who he inherited his artistic gene from.
mond cutting business. I have a big sister as well, but it was never in the cards that it would be left to her. One of my brothers became a ballet dancer, the other a bike repairer, and I became an artist. Perhaps a bike repairer isn’t so different from a diamond cutter, but we have all of us ended up doing something creative“, reflects Tal R.
”My father is from Israel and my mother is Danish. My parents met in Geneva in the ’60s, but moved to Tel Aviv, where I was born in 1967. When I was one year old, we moved to Denmark and my dad opened a diamond cutters on Gammel Køge Landevej in the suburbs of Copenhagen. My mum got a job as a teacher at the Jewish school, which us kids also went to.
Would you say that your upbringing was characterised by the lively imagination of your mother? ”Yes, perhaps. My mum would always hide herself away in a corner to read her dramatic thrillers while my dad would often just sit alone with his thoughts. Now I know that he was undoubtedly thinking about the next diamond he would have to cut and polish. But my parents always said: ”You should make your hobby into your job. A job should be something that you want to get up and do in the middle of the night. This is how they felt about their own jobs“.
Every day, my mum would tell us these violent, dramatic stories, she actually created a whole series of them. It was the only way that she could get us to walk the long route from our house in Valby to the bus stop on Toftegaards Plads. So when I finally got to school, I would carry it on by sketching violent drawings. Weapons, bombs blowing up, but also money, notes as well as coins, were among my favourite motifs. Money and weapons are objects of power that are understandable to a child. Just think how many bags of pork chops or soda you could buy for all that money! And when I came home from school, I would carry on drawing. Some children collected stickers or notepaper. I drew“.
This knowledge of colours, is it essential in order to be a good artist? ”Art is such a broad field. If you could cut a colour up and look at what it is made of, then it would consist of three things: The colour it has, how light or dark it is, and how cold or hot it is“.
Tal R fiddles with his cap and smiles as he attempts to make eye contact with our male photographer. ”Does it sound familiar?” he asks, receiving a nod of confirmation in reply. ”But back to that with art school. Art school was utterly ridiculous. But what I did was given a name: Art. And with it I suddenly lost my interest in it. I dropped out and travelled to Israel, where I worked on an avocado farm, an orange farm and a nut farm. And when I was fired from these jobs, then I sat next to the old ladies at the kibbutz and peeled potatoes and just sat looking at them. I liked that. Just sitting there“. Tal R pauses
Painting is to move colours in a certain direction. I push colours in one direction, towards a narrative and a specific universe. Per Kirkeby, who I respect enormously, and who is a genius with colours, says for example that he could paint with liver pate and a blindfold in front of his eyes. He is partly right about that“. As if he can read my thoughts, he interrupts himself: ”But let that remain a mystery“. Although Tal R is widely recognised today both in Denmark and abroad, has exhibited all over the world and is represented by the best galleries in New York, Berlin, London and Copenhagen, it appears as if he has both legs firmly planted on the ground. ”Yes, I sit here every day fantasising about paintings“, he answers humbly to my question. What do you think you would have been if you had not become an artist? ”I would have been a chef by day and a violent criminal by night“, he states unequivocally, though not without the hint of a twinkle in his eye.
When did you first realise how good you actually were? ”I realised how mind-stoppingly good I was when I was 13 years old. It just turned out that I was not quite as good as I thought“, laughs Tal R. But was it really so simple as it sounds for you to choose art as your way of life? ”What I drew when I was small was not considered art. I just had this insatiable desire to draw. This is what drives people, the desire. But it was never about being good. I ONLY ever did it for the love of it. I signed myself up for
Tal R pauses, looks out into the air. He straightens his cap and continues. ”I think my dad imagined that one of us three sons would take over the dia-
10
While we have been talking, Mona has prepared a delicious lunch for her boss. Delightful aromas from the small, yummy Turkish meze, along with a cheese plate, waft out from the kitchen. Tal R is clearly doing well here in his Paradise.
11
C O L O U R S The artist Tal R has created nine new fantastic colours for the classic Series 7™ chair designed by Arne Jacobsen.
I N
P E R F E C T Each colour has its own unique story.
S
H
A
P
E
13
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Colours in perfect shape
Chevalier Orange An oriental orange that with its aristocratic aura, is, according to Tal R, the most exclusive colour in the new spectrum. Opium Red With its decadent expression, Opium Red symbolises Eastern mystique and associations with 1930s Shanghai. Ai Blue Ai is Japanese for indigo, a deep blue tone, which will always be attracted by the colour black. Evren Purple Evren Purple is named after the artist Evren Tekinoktay, who is Tal R’s wife. This beautiful colour is an expression for their deep passion and love.
Altstadt Rose Altstadt Rose is one of Tal R’s signature colours, as he always leaves a rose somewhere in his work. The rose expresses the vanity and overwhelming beauty of everything.
Hüzün Green Hüzün Green is inspired by the colour green as used in Islamic culture. The same green can be seen on the buses that drive through the streets of Istanbul. Hüzün is Turkish for ’wistful’, a word which encompasses the dreamy quality of the colour, with its bitter-sweet hints of nostalgia and longing.
Chocolate Milk Brown Chocolate Milk Brown is a seductive colour with a drizzle of creamy white. It is like a warm embrace for the eyes.
Trieste Blue Named after the port in north-east Italy, Trieste Blue is that indefinable blue that artists and impressionists in particular have used for many decades. The colour moves between violet and blue and pulls constantly in both directions.
Egyptian Yellow Egyptian Yellow is a rich, saturated colour, which references ancient Egypt. The colour has a note of lead, which helps to give it its characteristic and distinct nuance.
15
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Fri™
TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen PHOTO Ditte Isager
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Fri™
Good design should be problem-solving and long-lasting, this goes without saying. But I also make design for people, to be used by people. I believe that good design should provoke feelings. Design should make you feel comfortable. And design should generate happiness Jaime Hayon
and it was precisely this function that Jaime Hayon clearly had in mind, when he designed the chair. Regarding the idea behind the chair, he says:
From the tension between Jaime Hayon’s playful Spanish expression, Danish minimalist design aesthetics and Fritz Hansen’s strong tradition of craftsmanship, the easy chair Fri™ is now launched. Fri™ has clear references to the easy chair Ro™, which Jaime Hayon and Fritz Hansen launched together two years ago, but whereas Ro™ invites the user to pause for reflection, Fri™ urges its sitter to get actively involved with the world around us. Wherever Fri™ is used, it creates a warm and open atmosphere,
”Fri™ is about the life that is going on around us. Fri™ is an open chair, which allows you to be a part of the surrounding world. It lends itself to conversation, participation and engagement, things which people need now more than ever. With Fri,™ I have tried to design a chair, which lightly decorates any space while also creating a welcoming, warm and informal atmosphere, whether it is used at home, in the office or in a café“. The words ring true, as Fri™ is a genuinely comfortable chair, in which one can sit and relax without appearing distanced or unapproachable. As a little brother to Ro™, Fri™ is a smaller and more open chair and it is apparent, that the chair invites its sitter to enjoy quality time and meaningful moments on ordinary days. And even though Fri™ cannot create a successful furnishing on its own, it helps immensely to achieve that indefinable state we are all searching for, namely, to feel at home. It’s a quality that is hard to put into words, but which makes a room pleasant to be in and that arises when architecture and design reach a higher level.
Facts The shell of Fri™ is made from moulded polyurethane foam with reinforced, glass fibre edges, using the exact same method as the Egg™ and the Swan™. The seat cushion is created using moulded polyurethane foam in order to achieve the correct shape and comfort, while the back cushion is produced from two layers of soft foam to increase the comfort.
18
Fri™ comes fully upholstered in seven different colours, carefully selected by Jaime Hayon. The base comes with four legs in brushed or powder coated aluminium. The powder coated legs are made in colours matching the upholstered shell and cushions and is only available for a selection of the designer colours.
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Architectural masterpieces
ARCHITECTURAL MASTERPIECES TEXT Michael Sheridan
PHOTO Thomas Loof / Pernille Pedersen, Hans Ole Madsen
20
specific place are universal, and our longing for them is timeless. It is precisely these characteristics that we associate with the traditional, premodern houses and often find lacking in modern residential design. Yet in the twentieth century, a group of Danish architects that included Arne Jacobsen, Karen and Ebbe Clemmensen, Inger and Johannes Exner and Halldor Gunnløgsson, created a golden age for residential architecture; modern homes, which continue to bring joy, to satisfy and to inspire.
With his latest book on Danish architecture and design, Landmarks – The Modern House in Denmark, the American architect Michael Sheridan presents a collection of smaller single-family homes built during the period 195262. In an excerpt from the book, the writer explains the essence of Denmark’s modern masterpieces of residential design, going on to describe their significance as sources of inspiration for the future. Residential design is a product of its environment, culture and its surroundings. But what really characterises a home; its informal atmosphere and proportions that base themselves on the human body, the experience of well-being and the feeling of having reached a quite
Twentieth-century Danish architecture was characterised by its simple, modest forms, a cultivation of craftsmanship and organic materials, and a great sensitivity for
21
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Architectural masterpieces
human well-being. The best buildings from the period are both rational and romantic, practical and sensual, elegant and efficient, and because they are thus capable of embracing these apparent oppositions, deeply human. The best examples of this humanistic modernism are the single-family dwellings, which were built in the ’50s and the beginning of the ’60s; at the start of that period that we still find ourselves in today. With their functional floor plans, modern way of relating to the space and sharp focus on the practicalities of eve-
experience the happiness and well-being, which is connected to living in harmony with one’s surroundings. The shape of the houses varies depending on the location and the architectural vision, but they are built using the same type of materials, in close connection with the landscape and with limited financial resources. In many cases, the houses were financed via state-supported loans, which limited floor plans to 130 m2 and dictated an upper limit for building expenses. In order to get as much as possible out of the square metres permitted, bedrooms were cut down to the minimum
ryday living, they remain ideal homes for the way we live today, and are epitomised by values that are more important today than ever before. The most important of these houses are landmarks, in every sense of the word. Landmarks by virtue of their aesthetic qualities and historical significance, every single one of these houses also serves to be a part of its surroundings and is designed based on the characteristics of the place. The results are houses that stand too as concrete landmarks, which integrate every single building into their surroundings. The result of this fusion is that the residents of these houses
space needed, hallways and corridors were by and large discarded, and common areas were placed together to form a large, connecting area facing the garden. For aesthetic as well as financial reasons, the load-bearing constructions were often left bare, and ceilings, walls and floors were covered in untreated wood, stone tiles or natural fibres. The result was informal, effectively adaptable housing experienced whatever the furnishing as an integrated part of the surroundings, with materials that accommodate the eternal human need for texture, structure and variation.
22
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Architectural masterpieces
Here, five or six decades after they were built, the best examples of these houses still serve their purpose, they move us with their deep beauty, and they still provide us with an important insight into how we can spend our free time. In addition to the obvious advantages of a tight budget and contact with nature, these houses also possess authenticity, which is deeply satisfying on many levels. The fundamental source of this authenticity is the simple and unpretentious design, wherein the character of the bearing structural elements and materials is made visible and immediately obvious.
This harmony of design provides us with an intimate relationship with our surroundings and a special, safe feeling often associated with older, pre-industrial buildings such as cottages and farmhouses. By working with the characteristics of the construction itself and using human senses rather than presupposed shapes or historical styles, Danish architects created these mid-20th century landmarks in the form of houses, which communicate a direct experience of the landscape. In them, we experience those rare moments of intense clarity, in which the beauty and pleasure of being alive is made clearly evident.
Landmarks is a tribute to those houses that stand as landmarks for the ’50s and ’60s, taking a closer look at the most important of these houses. The first section is an illustrated essay, which outlines the development of the modern single-family home in Denmark and describes the cut-off point between historic forces and individual talent, which created this golden age in Danish residential architecture. The middle section looks at fourteen selected houses, with the help of colour photographs taken especially for the book, along with descriptions and sketches that explain the house’s architecture and its placing in the landscape. The book ends with brief biographies of the architects who designed the fourteen houses.
23
M O N O C H R O M E TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen
25
PHOTO Ditte Isager
COOL MONOCHROME The Series 7™ celebrates its 60th birthday this year, and we are marking the anniversary with a renewed focus on the beautiful chair. We have commissioned the world-famous artist Tal R to conjure up nine new colours to dress the icon in and we have created a brand new look for the Series 7™ by working with a monochrome colour scheme. Using the same colour on both the frame and the shell gives the Series 7™ a welcoming and warm expression that is new and refreshing and makes you see the chair differently. The monochrome chair appears as a sculpture. At the same time the monochrome look adds a new relevance to the Series 7™ at a time where ”monochrome” is topical, not only in art but also on the catwalk, in films and in interior decoration. Monochrome is in other words ”cool“, but what do we actually mean when we say something is monochrome? The word monochrome comes from the Greek words mono (”one”) and chroma (”colour”). The style is best known from the art world, where it is used to describe a painting, a sketch or a photograph made in just one colour, or shades of the same colour. A black and white photograph is a monochrome image in shades of grey, also called Grisaille. Sepia is a monochrome image in shades of brown, while cyanotype is a monochrome image, which consists exclusively of blue tones. Perhaps you are familiar with these expressions from the image processing functions on your smartphone? In classicism, monochrome pictures are used to imitate reliefs, but you can also run into the style in France, where for decades artists have mastered the beautifully patterned ”Toile de Jouy” - cotton textiles with exotic natural motifs executed in monochrome colours, typically in shades of grey, brown or aubergine.
The monochrome Series 7™ comes in four colours: White, Black, Chevalier Orange and Trieste Blue.
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
COBE
What is it that makes successful architecture? For the relatively young architect studio COBE, which employs a staff of 60, the answer is simple: ”Architecture is successful when it blends into its surroundings and when it feels pleasant to be in for those who use it. Obviously it is better if it is beautiful and aesthetically pleasing, but first and foremost, it should convey that indefinable feeling that we call ”being at home“. In actual fact, it is no more complicated than that“, explains the studio’s founder and creative director, Dan Stubbergaard.
ARCHITECTURE THAT FOCUSES ON FEELING AT HOME TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen
PHOTO Rasmus Hjortshøj / Adam Mørk / Kåre Viemose
gaard explains: ”With the library, we wanted to create an urban living room, that is, a building that invites one to stay and make yourself at home, just as you would in your own living room. Copenhagen’s North-West district is characterised by the high number of different ethnic groups that live there. It is not a particularly attractive neighbourhood, and has its share of social problems. Today people are queuing outside waiting for the library to open in the morning. People flock here; they include old as well as young, lots of children and people from all social classes and countries imaginable. When I see a homeless person sitting deeply engrossed in a philosophical book for hours, then I know that we have created architecture that works. People like to be in this library, COBE does not wish to create large, gaping empty spaces, but rather a lot of small nooks that invite the users to search out and find peace and quiet within. Inside the building, wood has been used to a great extent to create a welcoming, warm house. ”Funnily enough, the building has not been subjected to vandalism or graffiti, which there is a lot of generally in the area. I get the feeling that the city’s residents are so pleased with their new library that they will really look after it“, concludes Stubbergaard.
In contrast to the architecture of so many other design studios, COBE’s projects are also so markedly different in their mode of expression that it is blatantly obvious for Stubbergaard, this has nothing whatsoever to do with signature architecture. From the new box-shaped library with its gold façades in Copenhagen’s North-West district, which was completed in 2011, the snake-formed pipe at Køge Nord Station, which will eventually bend across the motorway and railway tracks, Nørreport’s newly inaugurated, flow-shaped station with sunken bicycle beds, the large brick housing complex that is being built on Krøyers Plads next to the restaurant NOMA in Christianshavn, Adidas’ new, 11.000 m2 conference centre and showroom in the sporting brand’s headquarters in the German town of Herzogenaurach, a project the studio has just won the tender for or the apartment complex ”The Silo“, currently under construction in a former grain silo in Nordhavn in Copenhagen, with gallery space on the ground floor and a restaurant at the top. When looking at these from outside it is not immediately obvious that it is COBE, who are behind all these projects, but once one has been inside one of the studio’s completed buildings, a pattern begins to form. The buildings are pleasant to be in. They are comfortable, they are alive, they invite those who come inside to stay and to use them. And in contrast to so many other architectural designs, everything does not have to be flexible in COBE’s buildings. ”It is easy to kill off both nerves and soul, if everything in a building has to be mobile and flexible. We put great care into defining some special areas that have a very particular, enduring function. So there is also something constant in the space“. Urban living room An excellent example of COBE’s successful architecture is the library in Copenhagen’s North-West district. Stubber-
Photos: Library in the North-West district of Copenhagen.
29
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Sammen™
SAMMEN BY JAIME HAYON
TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen PHOTO Ditte Isager
Sammen™ is a new soft and comfortable dining chair, designed by Jaime Hayon for Fritz Hansen. Just like the easy chair Fri™, this straightforward chair has an open and welcoming design. The chair has been given the name Sammen™ which means ’together’ in Danish, because that sums it up completely: It should be used when we are together. Together to eat, to chat, to laugh, to do homework, to work, to prepare food or simply to be.
31
™
Sammen™
”An evening around the dinner table with good food, good wine, good company, with friends or family. With funny, cosy, enriching, deep and meaningful conversations. This is how I see this chair. This is how I have imagined its existence“, says Jaime Hayon. Sammen™ is also instantly welcoming. At eye level, it is accommodating, honest and immediate. ”We haven’t tried to reinvent the wheel with this chair. Our intention was rather to produce a soft and comfortable dining chair that can be sat in for long
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
periods. Because the table is the place where we meet, work, eat and discuss things, big as well as small, for hours“. When seated on Hayon’s new dining chair, one achieves a comfortable frame of mind, quite simply, one feels relaxed, at ease and ready to take part in what is going on around the table. The warm look of the wooden legs and the soft, upholstered seat, together with a back that hugs itself around the sitter, creates a softer, cosier and more welcoming dining room arrangement.
Facts Sammen™ comes in two varieties - with or without armrests. The shell of the chair is produced from a steel frame with soft, moulded foam on top and covered with fabric. The armrests are also made from a steel frame covered with soft, moulded foam and fabric. The seat cushion is produced from a plywood plate covered with soft, moulded foam in order to achieve the correct shape and comfort. The shell and seat cushion comes fully upholstered in a range of six designer colours. The base comes with four legs in natural or black lacquered oak veneer.
32
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Join™
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
NAP™ with wood
SEVEN QUICK QUESTIONS FOR SALTO TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen
– WHEN FUNCTION DICTATES FORM TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen
PHOTO Ditte Isager
The solid oak tabletop comes with clear or black lacquer. The four legs are made from black, powder coated steel.
PHOTO Ditte Isager
SO pleased about it. I’ll probably switch to the wooden model at home, and move my NAP™ chairs with the steel legs to the studio, where the stackable function will be more often used“.
”If people who sit in the chair feel like they have sat comfortably, then my job has succeeded“, says Kasper Salto about the chair NAP™. From the very start, the stackable chair was available both with and without armrest and with a frame either of chromed steel or powder coated in colours matching the chair’s shell. Since then, bar stools have been added to the series and this year, a new version of NAP™ will be launched with wooden legs in oak veneer. This gives the chair a wholly new and warmer, more homely look. We put seven quick questions to Salto:
5 Where did the idea come from? ”The idea had been there all the time pretty much, and Fritz Hansen had of course worked with it before, when Arne Jacobsen designed wooden, profiled legs for the Grand Prix™ back in 1957. We had not felt, however, that the time was ripe for this kind of design until now“.
1 Why launch NAP™ with wooden legs? ”Because interior design in general is heading increasingly in the direction of ”warm” environments with ”uplifting“ materials and colours“.
6 Can you say something about the combination of materials? ”As always, this kind of base is essential for strength and support. Precisely this challenge, combined with a good manufacturing method, has been the key to the matter. Naturally, we have looked extensively at how Arne Jacobsen solved the problem in his time, as he was one of the very first to design wooden legs for a shell chair in Denmark. Since then, many more have followed“.
2 How do the wooden legs affect the general impression of the chair? ”The wooden base softens the chair and makes it better suited for use in the home. You are likely to look at the chair in a different light. With steel legs, the shell ”floats” more visually. The wooden legs thereby offer a more rounded expression“.
7 What else have you been doing lately? And do you have other things in the pipeline for Fritz Hansen? ”I am actually involved in an exciting new project for Fritz Hansen, which I hope we shall be able to unveil one day“.
3 Do you think we will see a change in the chair’s function? Or will it attract a whole new audience? ”Yes, I think the wooden-legged chair will attract a highly quality-conscious audience, who is looking for a chair for the dinner table“.
”Our new collection of coffee tables have come about because of a need for them in our product range“, explains Fritz Hansen’s design team, when I meet with them to talk about their latest products. It sounds simple and this is also the impression, one is left with, when they explain that the concept of the table actually arose out of a playful process late one night at the workshop in Allerød, north of Copenhagen.
the highly polished edges, which, in addition to giving the table top its light expression, leave one with a feeling of sublime craftsmanship and a gorgeous finish. You would have to live somewhere very out of the ordinary, if you cannot easily imagine a place in your home where this table could fit in.
NAP™ comes in several varieties: Stackable, with 4 legs or sled and as a low or high bar stool, all with or without armrests. The shell’s back has a smooth, polished surface, while the front is mat with ripples that emphasize the geometry of the chair. The chair is also available with fabric upholstered seat, and now with wooden legs made of natural oak veneer.
4 What do you think of the result? ”I had not actually expected that I would end up feeling
”The whole idea of Join™ has been to make some coffee tables that do not scream out for attention. Light, flexible tables that do not cause a fight about which sofa or what easy chair one should sit in. Tables that simply blend in naturally and which are easy to place and easy to get around”, explains the team, and I can confirm that their mission has been successful.
We are sitting around the largest table in the collection. A ”surfboard”-shaped table top of oak is mounted on four black, powder coated, sharply contoured steel legs, in what appears to be an almost floating design. It is an elegant table, but also a quite remarkable one, and I cannot stop my fingers from gliding over
34
35
The Republic
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
EXPERIENCE ”THE REPUBLIC” TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen PHOTO Egon Gade
Last year, Fritz Hansen opened the doors for visitors in one of the company’s old manufacturing halls. Here, where the great masters like Kaare Klint, Arne Jacobsen, Poul Kjærholm and Verner Panton worked to create some of the greatest design icons in history, has today been transformed into a 500 m2 large exhibition area, which has been named ”The Republic“. The exhibition shows us Fritz Hansen from the inside, recounting the history of the company, from its beginnings in Christianshavn in 1872 and forward to today, when Fritz Hansen is presented as a modern design company with a presence in 40 countries.
know Fritz Hansen even better and to share our design philosophy with the world around us“. ”The name The Republic refers to the fact that design does not have a nationality or belong to a specific country. The Republic is a community, which everyone can be a part of. A place, where we share a common interest in design. And where we share the conviction, that design is essential for one’s quality of life. The Republic does not only offer a chair to sit in or a table to sit at, but a universe, which provides a much deeper experience than simply to fulfil various functional needs. So in being invited to experience The Republic, we are welcoming you on a journey, which may start in Allerød, but that can be taken regardless of where on the planet we find ourselves“.
”We are proud to be able to invite you into these halls, where Wegner, Jacobsen and Kjærholm worked, and where it is now the turn of the Spanish designer, Jaime Hayon“, says Jacob Holm, CEO of Fritz Hansen, continuing: ”We have built The Republic in order to give our customers the chance to get to
The exhibition is divided up into four themes; four zones that put the basic precepts of the company into perspective. Now, Legacy, Craft and Idea. The four themes put
36
the company into perspective and describe current design, craftsmanship, that which has been inherited from past generations, and the company’s history. Last but not least, it places design in an artistic perspective, with an art exhibition curated by Louisiana, Museum of Modern Art in Humlebæk north of Copenhagen, which includes pieces from the museum’s own collection.
that shows how Fritz Hansen has gone from being a small manufacturing company to being a major global player within furniture design. ”But the exhibition will also be of great benefit to our employees, because all our know-how is now gathered together in one place“, adds Anne Marie Tommerup, Professional Market Manager for Fritz Hansen. ”And because it has always been envisaged that we will use the space, for more detailed work, for inspiration and for meetings, which we actually do“. Thankfully, there is enough space that even prototypes using new materials and production methods can take place here in the hall. If you come for a visit sometime, you are sure to experience an Egg™, which is in the process of being upholstered and Swans™ that are being given a makeover, in all exciting variations of textiles and leather imaginable. The final round of leather selection will also take place here, making one in no doubt whatsoever what this is all about.
”Fritz Hansen wanted a place where they could come for inspiration and deep thought, which is why we have strived to put together an exhibition, which in a very concentrated form focuses the eye and the senses on not only materials but also texture, process, colour, space and the aesthetic dimension“, elaborates Louisiana’s director, Poul Erik Tøjner. In this way, working partners, retailers, industry people and other guests can, in small groups, really enjoy this tremendously well arranged exhibition, in a guided tour lasting roughly one-and-a-half hours. An exhibition
37
Jaime Hayon
HOMELINESS ACCORDING TO JAIME HAYON TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen
PHOTO KlunderBie
When do you think that a space is nice to be in and when do you feel at home? ”A room is homey when the lighting and the atmosphere comes together. When the music matches the place and when the combination of colours and lights makes me feel happy. But I would also like to be able to feel what is happening outside. I do not like being confined to rooms that are closed up, where daylight is excluded or where materials and furniture are cold, or where I get cold feet“.
Jaime Hayon is a busy man and these first months of the year are often his most hectic. He is currently in Vienna, on his way to Zurich, in order to prepare for the Milan Furniture Fair. Here he will present his new products, including the easy chair Fri™ and dining chair Sammen™, designed in collaboration with Fritz Hansen. We caught him on the phone to get his views on good design and homeliness. What is good design in your opinion? ”Good design is primarily design that lasts. Design must have something to say, it must be able to improve our quality of life and it must be meaningful. But for me, design is not just about function, it is also about feelings and I like if it provokes a little and can challenge our way of life“.
Do you think there is a difference in the perception of homeliness in the North and in the South? ”Yes, and for the simple reason that we spend more time outdoors in the South. In the North, you spend more time indoor and therefore your homes are more important to you. You put more effort into the decoration of your homes than they do in southern Europe. But the feeling of home, to have a pleasant fragrance, the scent of wood, for example, when you walk into a home, the pleasant sensation of daylight is universal and for me some of the most important factors when we talk about homeliness“.
How can furniture and design help to create homeliness? And do you think it is a special Danish phenomenon? ”Yes, I would say. The Danes have a very unique approach to furniture design. The Nordic understanding of nature and of using natural materials in furniture design is deeply rooted in you. You know how to bring nature inside, because your furniture is made of natural materials such as wood, stone and leather. These natural materials give instinctively a nice feeling, but it is also about the craftsmanship, that a piece of furniture is upholstered in a way so that it embraces you and makes you feel comfortable, that the finish is perfect. The Danes are exceptionally skilled at this“.
How can furniture contribute to a homely atmosphere? ”Furniture can greatly contribute to the creation of homeliness if it is comfortable, high quality and well-placed. There is nothing better than a couch near a fireplace in the afternoon on a winter day, with some tapas, a glass of wine and good friends“.
38
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Kjærholm
HANNE AND POUL
KJÆRHOLM TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen
The story of Hanne and Poul Kjærholm is unique, and despite the fact that the couple only just managed to celebrate their silver wedding anniversary before Poul Kjærholm died at just 51, they made a lasting impression on Danish furniture design and architectural history. Read here about how the couple created a home to last a lifetime. Poul Kjærholm trained originally as a cabinetmaker, but already while attending the Danish School of Arts and Crafts, he became interested in other construction materials than just wood. Kjærholm worked just as diligently with steel as his previous generation had worked with wood.
Christensen on the production of his furniture. At this time a young woman from Jutland, Hanne Laurits Dam, was studying architecture at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. Originally Hanne had
It is the material’s own language I seek to express Poul Kjærholm
dreamed of becoming a fashion designer in Paris, and thus started at the School for Drawing and Applied Arts for Women. She soon became tired of the environment there, however, and switched to the School of Architecture, where she graduated from professor Erik Christian Sørensen’s department in 1956.
Fresh out of art school, he was hired by Fritz Hansen’s design studio, where he experimented to his heart’s content, with tight structural curves as well as cast aluminium. His early prototypes were exhibited, discussed and recognised, but never made it into production. There was strong competition, too between Kjærholm and another successful furniture designer at Fritz Hansen, namely, Arne Jacobsen. There was not room for the both of them and Kjærholm got a job instead as a teacher in the furniture department of the Danish School of Arts and Crafts, and entered into a collaboration with the furniture manufacturer Ejvind Kold
An architectural masterpiece The couple were married in 1953 and during the late 1950s, they collaborated on the design of a series of picnic areas with cement tables and seats and toilets for Hjørring County’s roads department. Whilst Poul and Hanne Kjærholm never worked together again, they continued to help each other, like when they designed their own home in 1962 at Pinjehøj in Rungsted. Poul Kjærholm took care of the furniture, and Hanne Kjærholm for the house itself, which is considered today as an important work in Danish architecture.
Poul Kjærholm may have liked to mix hard materials such as marble, steel and glass with softer materials like leather, canvas, flagline and wicker, but all his furniture is as simple and classic in its expression as if it had been designed yesterday.
furnishing arrangement for the entire house, with furniture that he had designed himself. These furniture pieces are also inspired by the Bauhaus architect, Mies van der Rohe. On paper, one might expect a rather chilly atmosphere in the new house at Pinjehøj, but this is far from the case. While Poul Kjærholm may not have used much wood in his furniture designs, he was able, however, to bring out the warmth in the steel, and combined it with soft materials such as leather, wicker and canvas. Hanne Kjærholm elected to keep the ceiling beams and the frames of the windows and doors of the new house in bare pine. The couple expected that these materials would gain a rich, charming patina, and they were right. On the floor of the living rooms, a wall-to-wall carpet was laid of sisal ”tiles“, a fireplace was bricked in and the large, built-in bookcases of Oregon Pine were bursting with books, but otherwise, the furnishings were light and airy, making the decoration of the couple’s house a perfect match between the cold and the warm, the solid and the lightweight. In this way, Hanne and Poul Kjærholm created a lifetime of homeliness and their home remained intact until 2009, when Hanne Kjærholm died. Today the couple’s son, Thomas Kjærholm lives in the villa, where very little has been changed.
The PK54™ dining table with PK9™ chairs took up the other end of the house, separated only by a pine room divider. Two PK31™ sofas stood in the middle of the living room in front of the fireplace, with a PK61™ table between them.
Hanne Kjærholm worked with a modern outlook rooted in traditional ideals and designed a simple, modernistic house with strong references to Mies van der Rohe as well as to Japanese architecture. Hanne Kjærholm had a deep understanding for the panoramic view and the constant changes in nature, as well as for the play of light and its spatial qualities. With its tight lines and symmetrical, constructivist expression, the house is a clear example of modern classicism. Once she had finished, Hanne Kjærholm sent her drawings to her husband, who supposedly returned home from work with a complete The PK55™desk as well as the PK11™ armchair were central to the design and comprised the interior at one entire end of the living room, flanked however, by a bookcase in Oregon Pine designed by Kjærholm’s colleague, Mogens Koch.
40
41
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Unique marble
Did you know that... ... the word marble originates via Latin from the Greek word marmaros, meaning ’boulder’’. ...that marble is a rock formed out of the crystallisation of limestone rocks. ...that Italy is the world’s most important producer of marble. The best known marble mine is in Cararra in northern Italy, where a fine-grained, white type of marble has been mined since 283 BC, which when polished, achieves a light translucency on its surface. It was from here that Emperor Augustus sourced his marble to rebuild Rome. ...that the oldest preserved marble sculptures of artistic value are small figurines from around 2800-2600 BC from the Greek Cyclades islands. ...that since the Renaissance, marble has been one of the sculptor’s most important materials. Michelangelo, for example, often used Carrara marble. ...that it was customary during the Baroque era to use polychrome marble sculptures, and Bernini especially used a wide variety of colours in his large-scale compositions. ...that during the neoclassical era of the 18th- and 19th centuries, all white marble was preferred. This included the Danish sculptor Thorvaldsen. ...that a marble slab is particularly well-suited for rolling out shortcrust pastry, as it keeps the dough cool.
MARBLE
TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen
PHOTO Lene Tranberg
Ever since antiquity, marble has primarily been used as a building material, both inside and outside. Its widespread use can be attributed to the beauty, strength and durability of this stone, which furthermore is found in reasonable quantities and is easy to break and to work with. It is found in many different colours and structures and can be polished to give it a beautiful, shiny appearance. Marble is just as suitable for chiselling into statues, as the stone is very resistant to the weather and the statues are thus very hard-wearing. It is now apparent, however, that the polluted, acidic air of modern times corrodes marble badly. Marble is mined all over the world. In South America, quality marble types are found in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela. The best mines in North America are in Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee. In Scandinavia, marble can be found in Mid Sweden and in Norway, from where, during the 1700s, slabs were supplied among other places to build Frederikskirken (the Marble Church) in Copenhagen. Marble can also be found in Spain and in Portugal, in Germany and in Belgium, from where the best known, a black type, is relatively hard, but can be polished up. In France, around 250 types can be found, more than in any other country; most of them are used within France itself. Marble is also found in Turkey, but the best-known marble types are from Greece and Italy. In the production of Poul Kjærholm’s tables, we use marble from the Carrara mine. Previously we have strived to supply marble table tops that looked as similar to each other as possible, today, however, our customers prefer a unique marble top, and we have thus made it possible, via an online system, to choose one’s own marble top.
42
THE ACTIVITY -BASED OFFICE ENVIRONMENT TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen PHOTO Ketil Jacobsen, Studio Fotografica
When Deloitte moved into their new headquarters in December 2013, a unique building in Oslo’s Bjøvika district, designed by the world-famous architects Snöhetta, the intention was to go from a traditionally divided office environment to a 100% activity-based environment. Out was the small, individual offices, the fixed seating, stationary computers and all the paperwork. But how is this done? We sat down with Louise Lojdquist, who works as a consultant for Deloitte, and was part of the project group responsible for implementing the transformation.
Wireless networks, laptop computers, electronic filing systems and network file sharing are some of the technological innovations that have made it possible to create more attractive, homely office environments.
future. For us, the solution was an activity-based office environment. We wanted to establish both formal and informal meeting areas. As a supplier of many different professional services, it is important for us to ensure we can work together collaboratively, with closer dialogue across all of our areas of expertise. The new Deloitte house forms the foundation for a more dynamic way of task solving and enables us to better handle complex and complicated problems on behalf of our customers“.
We understand, that you have moved into new headquarters in Oslo and with it, gone from a more traditional office environment to a new working culture. How has this come about? ”We wanted to exploit a pre-existing move as the catalyst for change and business development. The vision for our new building has been to create a ”new standard for interaction” and to create a work day and a workplace, that will survive long into the
Where did the idea come from? ”We took a great deal of inspiration from Jonas Hurtigh Grabe from Veldhoen + Company AB, a well-known advocate of the activity-based office (future office), but we have done it in our own way.
44
We have also taken inspiration from other companies that have recently relocated and have been willing to share their experience, both good and bad, with us. Throughout it all, however, we have been interested in finding solutions that exactly match our work tasks as consultants, accountants and solicitors. For us, it has been crucial to ensure a smooth flow of knowledge sharing, discussions and collaboration within the individual projects, across all areas of expertise, and we had a close collaboration with the interior design team, iArk on creating the optimal planning and in
finding furniture that satisfied our needs across the different zones in the building“. How were the employees involved? ”We have used our in-house expertise throughout the entire relocation process. We have ensured a broad level of involvement from the very start, and we have
45
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Deloitte Oslo
negatively influence the production. We have succeeded in that goal. In addition, there is now a better flow between employees and management. A better flow of communication and information. An increase in knowledge sharing. Shorter distances and speedier response times. More pride in the organisation. And then it is nicer, cleaner and paperless“.
What do the customers say about it? ”Our experience is that the Deloitte house helps raise Deloitte’s position as a future-oriented company“.
Deloitte’s new Oslo headquarters is approximately 15,000 m2 in size, across 15 floors. Deloitte Norway have 1,250 employees, of which 720 work in the Oslo headquarters. The building is designed by the architectural firm Snöhetta while the interior was handled by interior designers iArk.
ensured however, that the house as a whole supports our shared vision of a new standard for collaboration“. How are the employees enjoying their new office environment? ”There is a new energy throughout the entire company“.
used considerable internal resources. We are now seeing the full pay-off of this involvement.
What are the advantages, and are there any disadvantages? ”Worth mentioning among the advantages are an increased sharing of expertise, far less paper, more physical movement and a greater interaction with colleagues. On the flip side, some of our employees have had difficulties finding people while others have found the greater level of visibility and accessibility stressful“.
Representatives from all work areas and support functions have helped to influence how our new headquarters is to be used. The project group has been in close dialogue with the individual business areas regarding their needs and demands for furniture, decoration and technical solutions. This was important, because the different working areas demand different solutions. We have
46
What have the management got to say? ”Throughout the entire project, the management has had a vision of creating a new standard for interaction and for promoting innovative solutions. A well-anchored management is a critical success factor in a strategic change process such as we have been through. We say: If you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got“.
We have also noted that at Deloitte here in Copenhagen, there are a number of beautiful Egg™ and Swan™ chairs – why choose furniture from Fritz Hansen? ”In the activity-based office environment, it is important to ensure that there is space both to work individually and for interaction with others. We fell head over heels for the Ro™ chair because it is perfect both for those, who want peace and quiet as well as for those who want to discuss a problem over a cup of coffee“.
Can you measure the results of the transformation? And if you can, how? ”The goal was that none of the project’s phases would
We have attempted to create inviting areas in many places throughout the building and have experienced success in creating a sense of affiliation and peace of mind in the rooms with free seating and clean desk Louise Lojdquist
47
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Henning Larsen Architects
HENNING LARSEN ARCHITECTS – DANISH APPROACH IN GERMANY TEXT Katrine Martensen-Larsen PHOTO RENDERING Henning Larsen Architects
Henning Larsen Architects is well known for their buildings and projects. Examples are the Royal Opera House in Copenhagen, the Moesgaard Museum near Aarhus, the recently opened University of Southern Denmark in Kolding and the Concert Hall in Reykjavik, for which they received the prestigious Mies van der Rohe award in 2013.
School of Finance and Management and we are working on a new sustainable IKEA store near Düsseldorf. All in all we are very positive about the development of our office here“. How would you describe your signature style? ”I think that in Henning Larsen Architects we do not have a specific signature style. We have the ambition to try to find solutions and architectural expressions that fit best to the context, meaning the program, the client, the site and the culture we build in. We use our knowledge on architecture and sustainability and our curiosity to learn and to reflect on the local culture and conditions. So every project is unique and without any predetermined style“.
As part of the office’s strategy, new subsidiaries are opened in Oslo, Riyadh, Hongkong, the Faroe Islands and in Munich. The office in Munich was opened in 2011 and is currently employing 33 people. We met partner and General Manager at Henning Larsen Architects Munich, Werner Frosch, for a talk about the studios signature style, iconic buildings, Siemens’ wishes for their new domicile, the biggest challenges in the process, the input from Henning Larsen Architects and a bit about what Danish Architecture actually is.
As we all know, we are in the era of the ’iconic building’ and the ’star architect’. However facile this might be, the designs of headquarters and public institutions are often offered to the biggest names, and the most ’iconic’ architects. How do you feel about this trend, and how do you work in a system like this and continue to create thoughtful, meaningful architecture, when so many developers are looking for ’the next Bilbao’? ”The question is: how many Bilbao-effects do we need and will there be a Bilbao-effect when we already have experienced hundreds of them?
Why has Henning Larsen Architects established an office in Munich and what projects are you currently working on? ”We opened our office in the end of 2011 after we won the competition for the new Siemens headquarters. It was clear from the beginning that we could not work on a project like this without close contact to the client and the city. From the beginning we saw this office as a more permanent office and we are actually working on different projects in Germany. For example we are building a new research center for solar and hydrogen research in Stuttgart and a new visitor center for the state-parliament in Stuttgart. In Frankfurt we just finished our design of a new building for the Frankfurt
But yes, some headquarters are built as icons. Siemens very consciously did not go this way, but tried to find the best architects and collaboration partners, out of a group of local as well as international architects, that they believed would be the best to handle this project. We showed our strengths in reading the
program closely, understanding the needs of the client and the city and transform this knowledge into architecture. Our concept for the project is not based on the idea of a new landmark but the idea to integrate a new building structure into the historical urban context. In my opinion some of the other proposals where far too expressive, they would maybe be interesting as a green field project but not in the heart of Munich“. What was the original brief from Siemens? From where came the idea with the big open public space? ”From day one, Siemens developed the project in a close dialogue with the City of Munich. That is why the program fulfills both the needs and wishes of Siemens and the interest of the city. Siemens defined very clearly the aims for its new headquarters being open and transparent and fulfilling the needs of a modern working environment for its employees. The City of Munich was very interested in connecting the historical city center (Altstadt) and the art campus with its museums and galleries in the North. This led us to the concept for the project: We designed a futureoriented building with six different courtyards, an internal communication axis connecting the office spaces and an outdoor public passage“. What are the challenges in relation to this open public space? And why did Siemens want this open space? ”With the new Siemens headquarters we move the mental border of the inner city. The challenge now is to connect beyond the edge of our building site allowing for pedestrians to cross the Altstadtring. Today on the western side of the building, the Altstadtring (a 4 lane Henning Larsen Architects has designed a future-oriented building with six different courtyards, an internal communication axis connecting the office spaces and an outdoor public passage. The building will be ready in 2016.
48
49
REPUBLIC No.16 2015
Henning Larsen Architects
road) cuts itself through the city. Now as Siemens provides the new passage it is up to the city to let this passage continue and establish a link to the art campus. It could be a bridge, an upgrade of the existing pedestrian tunnel or simply a pedestrian crossing“.
”No, there is no wish to buy in Danish architecture, but the right architecture. I think that we with our projects give a good answer to the ideas and visions in the program and the specific conditions of the site. To take the Siemens headquarters as an example: On one hand our design of a new open and transparent office building was exactly what Siemens was looking for, on the other we managed to develop a building structure that gave physical shape to the wishes of the City of Munich by fitting perfectly into the historic context and realizing a new connection between the historic city center and the museums quarter.
What inspired you in relation to designing this building? ”We were very much inspired by the historic morphology in the city center of Munich with massive building blocks and very nice courtyards. In difference to for example Copenhagen, in Munich many courtyards are open to the public and you can stroll through or enjoy a cup of coffee or a lunch in one of the cafés and restaurants inside these courtyards. So the idea of having a permeable headquarters was underpinned by the building as a sequence of different courtyards that are open for the public“.
As architects we do not get new projects because we are Danish, but Danish architects have always been successful outside Denmark, because there is a good mix between pragmatism, knowledge and artistic quality in a combination with idealism. I think that Denmark is intellectually and socially a very good platform to start exporting ideas and concepts, like for example the prioritization of bicycle traffic rather than car traffic, where other countries are far behind“.
How come Henning Larsen Architects won the project? Did Siemens or one of the other clients specifically ask for Danish Architecture? And what is Danish Architecture actually?
60 YEARS IN PERFECT SHAPE SERIES 7™ ANNIVERSARY EDITIONS - ONLY AVAILABLE IN 2015
This is the Ludwig Ferdinand Palais on Wittelsbacherplatz in Munich, build by Leo von Klenze in 1825 and Siemens’ headquarters since 1949. It will look just the same from the outside after the restoration of the building structure.
EST. 1872
50
JOIN US #FRITZHANSEN / @FRITZ_HANSEN